Apparatus for handling thread or the like



Feb. 6, 1940.

P. J. E. ANDERSSON APPARATUS FOR HANDLING THREAD OR THE LIKE Filed March 2, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 )1 rw': &\ 1

INVENTOR v Hy 1 PER J.E.ANDERSSON MWW ATTORNEY Feb. 1940- P. J. E. ANDERSSON 2,189,131

APPARATUS FOR HANDLING THREAD OR THE LIKE Filed March 2, 1936 s Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR [l 2 PER J. E.AN DERSSON ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 6, 1940 PATENT i OFFICE APPARATUS FOR HANDLING THREAD OR THE LIKE Per J. E. Andersson, Lakewood, Ohio, assignor to Industrial Rayon Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application March 2, 1936, Serial No. 66,597

6 Claims. (01. 242-53) 10 posed in processing sequence in regularly stepped arrangement, the thread or the like, hereinafter referred to as thread, being subjected to treatment while stored in generally helical form on such thread-storage, thread-advancing devices. While the driving mechanism therein shown and described is adapted to demands of greatly varying character, being characterized by an unusually high degree of flexibility, the improved driving mechanism of the present invention offers 20 in respect of construction, operation, maintenance and the like the important advantages of greater simplicity, economy and efflciency.

The improved driving mechanism oi the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a sectional elevation, on line l-l of Figure 2, showing the general arrangement of the driving mechanism for the thread-storage, thread-advancing devices. Figure 2 is a corresponding front elevation, parts being broken away for the sake of clearness. Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional elevation along line 3-3 of Figure 4 showing in more detail the lower end of the driving mechanism for the threadstorage, thread-advancing devices.- Figure 4 is l an elevation on the same scale along line 4-4 of Figure 3 showing the rear of the drivingmechanism of Figure 3. Figure 5 is a sectional elevation on the same scale along line 5-5 of. Figure 4 showing clutch mechanism which may be employed in the driving mechanism of the invention. FiguresG and 7 are respectively "a longitudinal section and 'an end elevation on an enlarged v scale of oneform of thread-storage, threadadvancing device which may be used in the apparatus shown.

' The arrangement advancing devices in the apparatus illustrated is 'generallysimilar to that shown in said prior application. Byreference to Figures land 2, it can 50 be'seen that the thread-storage, thread advancing devices of the apparatus are arranged, as in said prior; application} in vertical series. Each verticalseriescomprises a plurality of threadstorage; thread advancing devices bearing referenc numerals Z'to 8, inclusive". In each vertical ofthread storag'e, threadseries, a single thread is continuously subjected to one or more processing treatments on each thread-storage, thread-advancing device as it progresses-downward in the series, being finally collected by cap-twister 9. The thread-storage, 5

thread-advancing devices shown are of cantilever form; 1. e., supported and driven from one end only, and are of. a type such that the thread is stored thereon in a plurality of generally helical turns which are advanced axially by the action of the elements of each thread-storage, threadadvancing device. A relatively long length of thread is thus continuously temporarily stored on a single thread-storage, thread-advancing device.

In the apparatus shown, furthermore, the thread-storage, thread-advancing devices in each vertical series are disposed in stepped arrangement with the thread-receiving end of each device adjacent the thread-discharge end of the preceding device, the openends of the thread- 20 storage, thread-advancing devices being presented toward the operator. This arrangement provides important advantages in allowing access to the thread-storage, thread-advancing devices for starting the thread thereon, inspection, re- 26 pair, etc. In addition, thread-storage, threadadvancing devices in adjacent vertical series may be disposed in corresponding positions, thus providingadvantages in construction of the process ing medium supply and removal systems, since 80 such systems may extend longitudinally of the machine and serve all thread-storage, threadadvancing devices in corresponding positions. The thread-storage, thread-advancing devices are thus arranged in a plurality of vertical series 85.

in a bank inclined as a whole from the vertical.

The thread-storage, thread-advancing devices may take the form of reels of the form illustrated inFigures' G and 7-. These reels operate on the principle of the reel shown,described and claimed 40 in British Patent No. 413,414. From Figures 6 and lit can be seen that each -reel comprises two rigid, generally cylindrical members II and 12. Member M, whichmay be termed the concentric member, is mounted concentrically upon and for 45.

rotation with drive shaft l3, and has its periph ery comprising a plurality of bar members H. Member l2, which may-be termed the eccentric member, is rotatably mounted with its axis slightly ofiset from and inclined to that of the con- 50 centric member and has its periphery comprising a'plurality of bar members l5 equal in number to bar members'l l and alternately disposed therewith." 1

Conc'ent'ric member ll may be formed as cylindrical member.

shown, having the bar members I4 formed on the periphery of a hollow cylindrical body I6, in which case great rigidity is imparted to the bar members I4. While member Il may be mounted on the drive shaft I3 in various manners, in that shown it is held against shoulder I'I, formed on drive shaft I3, by capnut l8 which is threaded on the end of reel drive shaft I3. Member II is caused to rotate with the shaft l3 by means of a pin l9 through the shaft I3, the projecting ends of which pin extend into a slot 2i formed in the hub 22 of concentric member II The projecting end of the drive shaft I3 and the nut l8 are thus contained within the body I6 of member II and therefore protected from any processing liquids which may be used.

The bar-members I5 of eccentric member I2 may be provided at their outer ends with an annular reinforcing rib 23, and be supported from a ring-like portion 24 at their inner ends. Eccentric member I2 may thus constitute an extremely rigid, generally cylindrical cage-like member 25 mounted on a rigid annular supporting member 26, as by bolts 21. Annular supporting member 26 is rotatably supported in offset and inclined position with respect to the axis of concentric member II by being mounted in the desired position on frame member 28,.the shaft I3 being journalled in or otherwise supported in correct relationship with frame member 28. A bushing 29 may be provided in annular supporting member 26 to act as a bearing if desired. Flexible sealing means 3| may be provided, if desired, to prevent corrosion of the bearing members.

Rotation of the reel drive shaft l3 causes concentric member II flxed thereto to rotate, where upon contact of bar members I4 of concentric member II with bar members l5 of eccentric member I 2 causes said eccentric member to rotate at the same angular speed. During such rotation, the offset relationship of the generally cylindrical members II and I2 causes the thread to transfer from the bar members of one generally cylindrical member to the bar members of the other generally At the same time the inclined relationship of said generally cylindrical members causes the thread to advance in a plurality of spaced generally helical turns. While the thread is so stored on one or more 'reels, various processing treatments may be applied to the thread. Thus in the apparatus shown in Figures 1 and 2, various liquid processing treatments such as bleaching, washing, soaping, etc.,

may be applied on certain of the reels 2, 3, 4, 5

and 6, while on reel I the thread may be stored for an interval during which no processing medium is applied, any liquid carried by the thread from the preceding liquid processing stage being allowed to drip from the thread before it is dried on the reel 8. The processing liquid may be applied to the thread on the reel in each liquid processing stage from 'a reagent distributor 32 positioned above such reel, said reagent"distributor being supplied from a conduit 33 which may extend longitudinally of the machine and serve all like reels in a horizontal series. The processing liquid may be collected in a trough 34 beneath each reel which may likewise extend longitudinally of the machine and serve all corresponding reels in a horizontal series. Reel 8, which, in the apparatus shown, is enclosed by chamber 35 and is used for the drying of the thread, may be sup lied with a drying medium, such as heated air, through hollow shaft I3a.

, The driving mechanism shown, which embodies the present invention, comprises a main drive shaft 36 which is adapted to drive, as, for example, through gears 31 and 38, a plurality of upwardly extending shafts 39 herein called intermediate drive shafts. Each drive shaft 39 drives 5 each reel of a descending vertical series of reels throughone of the stub shafts I3. The latter may be driven, as by gears 42 and 43, from the corresponding intermediate drive shaft. While the intermediate drive shafts 39 are shown asdriven from their lower ends from a common main drive shaft 36, it is apparent that the intermediate drive shafts 39 may, without departing from the spirit of the invention, readily be driven, whether in common, in groups or individually, by various other means.

Each such upwardly extending intermediate drive shaft 39 may be disposed parallel to the front of the inclined bank formed by the reels; i. e., at an angle to the vertical, in which case each'intermediate drive shaft 39 may conveniently have disposed along its length a plurality of drive shafts I3, each adapted to drive a reel. Drive shafts I3 are preferably positioned with their axes parallel to each other but inclined to the axis of intermediate drive shaft 39. It is preferable, as in the apparatus illustrated, to have all intermediate drive shafts 39 parallel to each other and disposed in or at least parallel to a common oblique plane parallel to the main drive shaft 36.

In the apparatus shown, the frame member 28 of each reel is provided with a bracket 44 by means of which the reels in each vertical series are mounted in the desired position on one of the inclined beams 45 which form part of the framework of the machine. There are as many such inclined beams 45 as there are vertical series of reels,-all extending upward at a common angle to the vertical. The intermediate drive shaft 39 for each vertical series of reelsis mounted, as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3, along a corresponding inclined beam 45 as by means of the main bracket 41 at the lower end of shaft 39 and one or more bearing brackets 46. Each main bracket 4'! comprises a journalled support 48 for the secondary drive shaft 39 and a support 49 in which is journalled the hollow drive shaft I3a of the dryer reel 8 and in which is mounted the end of the supply duct 50 for the drying medium furnished to the hollow drive shaft I3a.

If desired, a trough 52 to serve as a lubricant reservoir may be mounted on each bracket 41 to enclose the lower end of each helical gear 31. Helical gears 31 are, in the apparatus illustrated, mounted on main drive shaft 36 and engage helical gears 38, each of which is mounted to drive' an intermediate drive shaft 39. The main drive shaft 36 in the apparatus shown is mounted on the frame member SI of the machine by means of a plurality of bearing brackets 53, and is rotated by means of a chain 83 driving sprocket 94 mounted for rotation with drive shaft 39, the chain being driven from sprocket 9I'mounted on shaft 86 which is caused to rotate by chain 68 from motor 69.

It has been found desirable to provide means for'disengaging a given vertical series of reels from the driving means, since it is often desirable to stop a vertical series of reels for inspection, adjustment, etc., without at the same time stop ping the whole machine. In the apparatus shown,

clutch mechanism of the form shown to advantage in Figures 4 and 5 may conveniently be provided.

To this end, the helical gear 31 for each vertical 7 series of reels is rotatably mounted on main drive shaft 38, being located against a collar 54 fixed thereto. A clutch member 55, slidable along the main drive shaft 36, is keyed to said drive shaft and adapted to have its jaw teeth 56 engage corresponding teeth 51 formed on the boss of the helical gear 31. Clutch member 55 is shown as being actuated by means of a shifter fork 58 being operated by rotation of the bar member 60 to which it is fixed, which bar member extends to the operating face of the machine, where it is provided with a handle 8|, shown in Figures 1 and 2, easily accessible to the operator. A stop 62 on thedrive shaft 36 may be provided to limit the travel of the clutch member 55 when it is disengaged. In Figure 4 the clutch at the'extreme right is shown disengaged while the other two are shown in the engaged position.

The gears 42 and 43, which, in the embodiment of the invention illustrated, drive the drive shafts i3 of the thread-storage, thread-advancing devices from the drive shafts 39, may be of various types, butbevei gears have been found to be especially well adapted therefor. Bevel gears operate with .less sliding action and consequently less power loss under conditions of poor lubrication than do other forms of gears which might be employetf The employment of bevel gears at this point is therefore desirable since a more complicated construction than that shown would be required to-insure complete lubrication vof the gears 42 and 43. It is desirableto use reinforced Bakelite as the material for gears 42 and 43 for several reasons; among them, that the initial cost of gears so made is much lower than that of like gears of metal; that the strength requirements of the gears 62 and 43 are well within the strength of such materials; and such gears are quiet running; that such gears wear well with only occasional, or even without any, lubrication; and that such gears are corrosionresistant, which is advantageous because of the corrosive vapors or liquids, due to the processing liquids employed, to which the gears may be exposed.

The apparatus illustrated includes cap-twisters' 9, comprising collecting devices to which the thread passes from each vertical series of reels. A plurality of cap-twlsters 9 is mounted on a lifting rail 12, which is supported by brackets 13. Brackets 13 are designed to guide the lifting rail 12 in its vertical path, each comprising guide surfaces 14 which are adapted to slide on a rigidly supported guide rod 15. The lifting rail 12 is vertically reciprocated by tension members 16 fastened thereto at one end and at the other to sprockets l'l rigidly mounted on a rotatable shaft 18 extending parallel to the lifting rail..

The shaft 18 is given a suitable oscillatory mo tion which causes the chains 18 to wind on and unwind from sprockets i1, thus vertically reciprocating lifting rail 12. This oscillatory motion is imparted to shaft I8 by chains 19 adapted to wind on and unwind from sprockets 8| rigidly mounted on shaft 18 and actuated by levers 82 from cams 83 mounted on drive shaft 84, which is driven from the shaft 66 through a speed reducer 85. Counter-weights 86, supported by chains 81 adapted to wind on and un-' wind from sprockets 88, may be provided to counter-balance the weight of the reciprocating parts.

The whirls 89 of each pair of adjacent captwisters 9 are driven by belts 9i from a rapidly rotating drum 92 which is driven by motor 89 through chain 68. Guide rollers 93, also adapted to reciprocate vertically by being supported by brackets I3, may be provided to guide the belts 9! on the whirls 89. The belt tightener 94 may also be supplied for each belt. The effect of this cap-twisting mechanism is to rapidly rotate and vertically reciprocate the bobbins of the several cap-twisters so that the thread is twisted and at the same time wound upon the bobbins in the well-known manner. Shields 95 may be provided between adjacent twisters to prevent the balloon formed by the thread during the operation of each twister from interfering with those of adjacent twisters.

The drive mechanism comprising the present invention is capable of various modifications and may be applied to other uses than the one in connection with which it is herein illustrated. Where, asin the case of the apparatus illustrated, the invention is employed in the continuous processing of thread, it is obvious that various modifications may be made, such, for instance, as the employment of types of threadstorage devices otherthan the one described, without in any way departing from the spirit of the invention. In the appended claims, the term thread" is intended to include, besides thread per se,'all other types of materials capable of being handled by the thread-storage, thread-advancing devices of the apparatus.

It is intended that the patent shall cover, by suitable expression in the appended claims, whatever features of patentable novelty reside in the invention,

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus comprising a bank of cantilever thread-storage, thread-advancing devices arranged in a plurality of series each of which handles a single thread, said bank being inclined from the vertical; drive shafts for said thread-storage, thread-advancing devices projecting endwise from said bank, the axes of said drive shafts being substantially horizontal; a succession of upwardly extending intermediate drive shafts paralleling the plane of said bank; connecting means between said intermediate drive shafts and said projecting drive shafts for rotating said projecting .drive shafts; a main drive shaft extending transversely of said intermediate drive shafts; and connecting means for rotating said intermediate drive shafts from said main drive shaft.

2. Apparatus comprising a bank of cantilever thread-storage, thread-advancing devices arranged in a plurality of series each of which handles a single thread, said bank being inclined from the vertical; drive shafts for said threadstorage, thread-advancing devices projecting endwise from said bank, the axes of said drive shafts being substantially horizontal; a succession of intermediate drive shafts paralleling the plane of said bank; connecting means between said intermediate drive shafts and said projecting drive shafts for rotating said projecting drive shafts; a main drive shaft extending transversely of and operatively connected to said intermediate drive shafts whereby said intermediate drive shafts are rotated; and clutch means for-disconnecting said intermediate drive shafts from said advancing devices arranged in a plurality of descending series each of which handles a single thread; drive shafts for said thread-storage,

extending intermediate drive shafts paralleling" the plane of said bank; connecting means between each of said intermediate drive shafts and the projecting drive shafts of one of said descending series of thread-storage, thread-advancing devices; a main drive shaft extending transversely of and operatively connected to said intermediate drive shafts whereby said intermediate drive shafts are rotated; and clutch means for disconnecting said intermediate drive shafts from said main drive shaft.

4. Apparatus comprising an upwardly extending bank of cantilever thread-storage, threadadvancin'g devices arranged in a plurality of descending series each of which handles a single thread; drive shafts for said thread-storage, thread-advancing devices projecting endwise from said bank, the axes of said drive shafts being substantially horizontal; a plurality of upwardly extending intermediate drive shafts parallelin the plane of said bank; connecting means between 'each of said intermediate drive shafts and the ingbank of cantilever thread-storage, thread-advancing devices, said thread-storage, thread-advancing devices being disposed in said bankin a plurality of series each of which handles a single thread; drive shafts for said thread-storage, thread-advancing devices projecting obliquely from the plane of said bank, said drive shafts being parallel to each other; a succession of intermediate drive shafts paralleling the plane of said bank; connecting means between said intermediate drive shafts and said projecting drive shafts for rotating said projecting drive shafts; a main drive shaft extending transversely of and operatively connected to said intermediate drive shafts whereby said intermediate drive shafts are rotated; and clutch means for disconnecting said intermediate drive shafts from said main drive shaft.

6. Apparatus comprising an upwardly extending bank 'of cantilever thread-storage, threadadvancing devices, said thread-storage, threadadvancing devices being disposed in said bank in a plurality of series each of which handles a single thread; drive shafts for said thread-storage, thread-advancing devices projecting obliquely from the plane of said bank, said drive shafts being parallel to each other; a succession of upwardly extending intermediate drive shafts paralleling the plane of said bank; connecting means between said intermediate drive shafts and said projecting drive shafts for rotating said projecting drive shafts; a main drive shaft extending transversely of said intermediate drive shaft; and connecting means for rotating said intermediate drive shafts from said main drive shaft.

PER J. E. ANDERSSON. 

